Monster in the Closet (1986) but Mostly Just Paul Walker



There are only a few celebrity deaths that have truly affected me.  These deaths come in the form of people that I not only respect, but people who feel like they have been a part of my life through my formative years and into these early years of my adulthood.  It is as though they have always been there for me.  When they pass away, there is a hole left behind in my heart.

This whole thought process was brought on by the passing of one Paul Walker.  He passed away on November 30th, 2013 at the age of 40.  He was the passenger in a car on leaving a charity event when he was killed in an accident.  He left behind a daughter.

You might be thinking that I’m overreacting by saying that I’m torn up by the death of Paul Walker, but I am.  As I alluded to, he was practically a part of my life from a young age.  I grew up on his movies.  I remember being thirteen or so, and my parents let me pick a few DVDs to buy one day while we were out.  The three that I remember getting were Red Dragon, Final Destination, and Joy Ride.  Joy Ride quickly became one of my most watched movies.  The story of two brothers riding the highway and being terrorized by a truck driver entertained me to no end.  My obsession with the movie as a teenager may have spawned my interest in other Paul Walker movies.  This is not to say that the DVD was the first time that I had seen the movie.  I watched it whenever it was on one of the movie channels.

Anyway, I also watched The Fast and the Furious, 2 Fast 2 Furious, and Varsity Blues a lot at that age.  Maybe not so much 2 Fast 2 Furious, but I enjoy the other two quite a lot.  The Fast and the Furious is the movie that people most associate Paul Walker with.  Well, the entire franchise, I guess.  He’s the main character of the first two, and the second lead of four through six.  His character is/was integral to the series and it’ll be hard to imagine it continuing without him.  Sure, Tokyo Drift didn’t have him, but after Fast Five and Furious Six, it’s hard to think that they can possibly do the movies without him any longer.

As I went through my teen years, I saw some of the other Paul Walker movies such as Pleasantville, The Skulls, She’s All That, Into the Blue, and Running Scared.  Running Scared was one of the first times that I borrowed a movie from a friend in order to watch it.  That’s a memory that cannot be changed.  It’s a big moment in the life of a movie fan.  There are moments like discovering a great director/actor, first movie memory, first theater memory, the first movie you bought yourself, the first movie you borrowed… Running Scared got to be one of those milestones in my movie watching life.

Ever since my puberty years, Paul Walker has been a part of my life.  I’ve watched most of his movies.  I’ve enjoyed most of those movies.  I’ve enjoyed Paul Walker in all of the movies.  The guy looked like he was enjoying his time on screen as much as I was.  He took so much pleasure in being in movies.  He was so excited to make entertainment for people to watch.  This excitement bled through the screen and touched the audience.  Anyone who saw a Paul Walker movie became more energized thanks to Paul Walker’s on screen personality.  He was a joy to watch and will be greatly missed.

In honor of Paul Walker, I sat down and watched his first movie.  The movie was called Monster in the Closet.  It was released in 1985 by Troma.  I’m not going to review the movie because that’s not necessary.  I just want to say that it was a delight to see Paul Walker as a child.  He still looked like the Paul Walker that we knew and loved.  He had that smile that lit up the screen at his young age.  His performance was pretty good.  It’s easy to see how he went on to have a successful future.

Paul Walker was one of those people who could lift anything he was in from the low level that it could have been.  It was due to the energy he brought into whatever movie he was starring in.  If you’ve ever seen a Paul Walker movie, you know what I’m talking about.  He might not have been the greatest actor, but he always seemed to be having fun and we would have fun watching it.  The loss of Paul Walker is a loss to the overall joy of cinema.  I’ll miss his smile and his eagerness.  I’ll miss Paul Walker.

There are a few quick notes I’m going to put in here:

  • One of the actors in Monster in the Closet was Ritchie Montgomery, who was also in Playing for Keeps.
  • Monster in the Closet was added as a second movie for this week.  The other movie that is scheduled this week is The Christmas Consultant.
  • If you have any suggestions, leave them in the comments or tell me on Twitter.  I know nobody ever does this, but I feel the need to repeat it every post anyway.  Or just leave a comment.  I like comments.

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